Deborah Walley

At 59 years old, Deborah Walley physical status not available right now. We will update Deborah Walley's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

Deborah Walley (August 12, 1941 – May 10, 2001) was an American actress known for her role in Gidget Goes Hawaiian (1961) and several Beach Party films.

Early years

Walley was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to Ice Capades skating stars and choreographers Nathan and Edith Walley. She made her first public appearance at Madison Square Garden when she was three years old.

Walley attended Central High School in Bridgeport. In her teens, she decided to pursue a career in acting. She appeared on stage in a summer stock show of Charley's Aunt, Grace May, at 14 years old.

Walley was a student at Rosarian Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida, where she was cast as Cinderella in a musical performance at the Royal Poinciana Playhouse during her sophomore year. She studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.

Personal life and death

Walley's first marriage was to John Reynolds, with whom she had a son named Justin. Walley was married to actor John Ashley and had another son, Anthony, from 1962 to 1966. She married Chet McCracken, with whom she stayed until divorcing Ashley in 1975.

Walley died of esophageal cancer at her home in Sedona, Arizona, at age 59.

Source

Career

Walley appeared on television in episodes of Naked City ("To Walk in Silence") and Route 66 ("Ten Drops of Water").

When performing in Anton Chekhov's Three Sisters, Walley was discovered by agent Joyce Selznick, and she made her Hollywood debut as Gidget in 1961's Gidget Goes Hawaiian. The film attracted a following among teenage viewers, and she was named as the Best Female Newcomer in the Photoplay competition. She was named the most popular actress of 1961 by the Photoplay magazine.

In two comedies, Disney recruited Walley to play an ingenue, Bon Voyage! (1962) and Summer Magic (1963), and she performed in the latter.

She appeared in MGM's The Young Lovers (1964).

Walley's involvement in many comedies, including Frankie Avalon and her partner John Ashley: Beach Blanket Bingo (1965), Ski Party (1965), and Sergeant Dead Head (1965). In some of these films, she appeared in certain of them.

Walley appeared in Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1966) and was the female lead in the AIP's final beach-party film, Ghost (1966), opposite Tommy Kirk. She and Kirk were reunited in a beach-party film directed by Stephanie Rothman titled It's a Bikini World (filmed in 1965 but released in 1967).

She appeared in Elvis Presley's Spinout first, followed by her lead role in the science-fiction film The Bubble (1966).

("Who Killed Andy Zygmunt?" Walley's Law was a guest star on Burke's Law. ("This Train Don't Stop Till It Gets There"), The Greatest Show on Earth ("This Train Don't Stop," The Nancy Styles Novel"), Gomer Pyle ("The Nancy Styles Story"), The Men from Shiloh ("With Love, Bullets, and Valentines"), The Wizard of Love ("With Love, Bullets, and Valentines"), The Greatest Show on Earth ("This Train Don't Stop," The Nancy Styles Story"), Gomer Pyle, The Men from "With Love, Man From Love, Boys, Manny Gets There I Am"

Walley portrayed Suzie Hubbard Buell in the comedy series The Mothers-in-Law in 1967, with her film career in decline. Kay Cole appeared in Suzie in the first pilot, but Walley replaced her for the series's two seasons on television.

Walley worked as an art director on The Courtship of Eddie's Father, as well as an episode of The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. ("The Double-Offair Affair")

Walley's later films included Drag Racer (1971), The Severed Arm (1973), and Benji (1974).

She continued to guest on shows including "Mystery on the Avalanche Express") and Simon & Simon ("The Last Big Break"). She wrote and directed The Legend of Seeks-To-Great (1989), which received multiple accolades, including the National Cine Golden Eagle Award for best fiction film, the Oklahoma Tribal Council Award for best fiction film, and the 1991 Algrave International Video Festival's best-of-festival award.

Walley moved to Sedona, Arizona, in 1991 to concentrate on raising her family while writing and producing. Pied Piper Productions, a non-profit theater company for children, was founded by Kately and was co-founder of the Sedona Children's Theater.

In 1993, she published Grandfather's Good Medicine, which was based on the story of The Legend of Seeks-To-Greater. Through her Swiftwind Productions company, she created scripts and taught acting and production techniques to American Indians, as well as continuing to produce and perform in plays.

Walley returned to Hollywood in 1999, where she performed as a "hobby." She appeared on Baywatch and Passions on the daytime soap opera. Through her Imagination Playshops, acting workshops for children in the United States and Australia, she continued to work with children. She has worked with the Educational Theatre Company, a Los Angeles-based multiethnic group.

Source